party foul
noun
a rude or embarrassing blunder or faux pas
What does party foul mean?
A party foul is a rude or embarrassing blunder or faux pas, especially one that is socially awkward.
Examples of party foul
Cold food? Party foul! Expert tricks to keep food perfectly warm for a party.
—(headline), USA Today, 2 Oct. 2023
To avoid your worst nightmare coming true and keep yourself on the guest list for years to come, don’t engage in any party fouls that’ll have you barred from the next big event.
—The makers of a popular chili brand have created a new product that could make a common party foul a thing of the past. Hormel has designed new corn tortilla chips with a perforated line that splits the chip in half. Why? So the eater can dip half of the chip into the spread of their choice, eat it, and then go back in for a second dip without the risk of spreading their mouth germs into a communal bowl.
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Where does party foul come from?
Party foul takes the sense of foul referring to an infringement of the rules in a game or sport and applies it to social gatherings. The earliest known print uses of party foul appear in the early 1990s in collegiate contexts.
Additions to UCLA’s slang dictionary include: …
9 — Party foul: do something rude at a social gathering.
—Leave it to the college kids, experts on party fouls and pool-side etiquette, to win the beer tournament.
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How is party foul used?
While party foul began as a term for embarrassing behavior or acts at, understandably enough, parties, its use has since broadened to cover social miscues in other contexts.
Planes and trains can be noisy, and playing your media sans headphones is a party foul on every mode of transportation.
—During another moment in the show, the former child star made a party foul as she realized she forgot to set a timer for the cake they were baking.
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